jazzyvee

[quote name='Dave_the_bass' timestamp='1389086509' post='2329619'] I tend to chuck the songs on a cd and put it in my car. Every journey for the next week is done with the music in the background while I subconsciously learn the song and absorb the bass line. I then sit down with the bass and tend to be able to play a close approximation after a couple of attempts. [/quote] Very similar to my learning strategy. I tend to also visualise where I would be playing the part in my head which usually turns out close if not correct when I start to play the song. If the part has some tricky parts or a difficult solo that needs to be reproduced, i tend to work those out first because that may require a disproportionately longer time to get right than the groove of the track. Most of the time I use the CD Player on my hi-fi which has a repeat option so I can break the track down into parts for learning. Many of the tracks I get to play require me to get very close to the original notes and the bass tone so I usually try to get the tone right at the beginning so I'm hearing the music in the right context. I only tend to write things down if it is unusually complex or there are conflicts between the musicians about which arrangement learned by band member is correct. Jazzyvee

Still lusting for a Series I or II short scale Stanley Clarke Style alembic bass. Jazzyvee

I haven't had any good times using Ashdown bass rigs. There are a few places we play regularly that have Ashdown rigs and I now take my mesa boogie head or other times I go direct to the PA and bypass the bass rig completely. Jazzyvee

I'd love to do some steely dan tracks live something like Green Earrings springs to mind as a great one to tackle.

The times I've got a decent sound from a guitar in a bass amp is if the guitar is electric/acoustic or an electric with a piezzo switched on like a parker fly. However apart from that I used to have one of these peavey micro bass combo's to practice with at home and that was a great sounding amp and wonderful to play through using a strat. I used to take it to many a jam session or small gig.

I went this year for the first time and wished I'd brought my own bass when I was trying out bass gear. Does anyone know the policy about punters bringing in personal instruments to the show? Jazzyvee

[quote name='lefrash' timestamp='1387393570' post='2311544'] I would say Yes to this, but for me the main point of an external preamp is for the times you dont get to gig your own amp. In a perfect world We'd all use our own gear at every gig but thats not really feasible (IME anyway). Having a preamp pedal will allow you to have the same tone (or as close as you'll get) at every gig, plus it means the PA should be getting my tone, rather than just the horrible dry tone. [/quote] I've recently started taking my F1-x to gigs where a backline is provided and some engineers still prefer me to plug into their box rather than use my DI-Out. However, when I do use my own DI out , I tend to give them the pre signal which gives them everything except the master volume so I can control my on-stage volume without giving the FOH a too hot signal. So far it's working well.

Excellent live band and will definitely catch you guys again somewhere in the midlands.

Last night I've been learning the Al Jarreau version of Chick Corea's Spain and making more progress on Stanley Clarkes version of No Mystery as they are tracks I've been wanting to do at a gig for a good while. Jazzyvee

I'll be interested in the solution as I too have an F1-x and it would be good to have one or two spare clean sounding valves knocking around. Jazzvee

I'm currently using a QSC PLX 2402 with orn or two mesa boogie cabs and love the clean sound and headroom. Only downside is it's a heavy brute to carry. Jazzyvee

Are they made in the UK?

I have a 1990's Fender twin Amp which is so wonderful sounding and makes up for the fact it weighs a ton. I only use it with my Fender Strat so the other guitars get to use the Roland JC120.

[quote name='Mottlefeeder' timestamp='1386681452' post='2302993'] mcnach - thanks for the clarifaction - it is smaller than I first thought, so I will keep it in mind if the current experiment fails jazzyvee - PJB looks good, but is quite expensive and think I read that the recommended battery only lasts an hour. Last night's session was 3 1/2 hours. David [/quote] Fair point. I've not used mine for many long gigs on battery only but have used it for 3 hour-ish rehearsals and it's been fine. That said they have been with acoustic bands so volume hasn't been up high and we aren't playing for the whole 3 hours i expect.

I can recommend the Alembic F1-x. I've had one since around 2004 and use it with a QSC power amp. It's a pretty basic unit in terms of it's bass mid and treble controls compared to many other bass pre-amps available on the market but it does enable me to get the sound I want easily without much fuss. Jazzyvee

How about a PJB Briefcase that runs off the mains and also an internal rechargeable battery. It also comes with a lead to charge it from a car accessory point plus you can also clip a car battery to the external terminals on the back. [url="http://www.philjonespuresound.com/products/download.htm?ft=download&id=8&fid=16"]User Manual[/url] Jazzyvee

Yes Clarky you have a beauty there. How is the weight of it working for you? Jazzyvee

I'm coming from a guitar playing background of learning one finger per fret so that generally is how I find myself playing bass naturally. I'm planning on taking up double bass next year so that could give me problems if I have to start doing 1 2 4. Jazzyvee

I'm not in the habit of lending my gear, except a tuner, to anyone even at sessions where there are multiple bands playing. It's a firm but polite. "No, i don't allow use of my gear". The story here brings the wisdom of this policy home. Maybe on solution is to bring a DI- box and let them use that into the PA instead. Jazzyvee

I've been trying this for a couple of weeks now, only at home though, and it's quite difficult hear a significant difference in sound in an average living room so I'm going to try it out on my next non reggae gig and hear what the difference is. What seemed to give me the clearest sound either in mono or "dual mono"at home was a HF output from the crossover into a roland JC120 guitar amp. That seemed to give me great clarity as long as I didn't add too much top end or overload the amp. So still more experimenting to do.

[quote name='spongebob' timestamp='1385927310' post='2293753'] I squeeze all my leads and stuff in my bass case along with the bass itself - less trips! [/quote] I have a dual bass gig bag and sometimes use that to hold all my bits and bobs.

I'd have gone for that if I had my eyes open. Jazzyvee